07/06/2026
Horse Play Leads to Death
Cottam Power Station
Friday the 13th, January 1967
In January 1967, the quiet Yorkshire town of Pontefract found itself tied to a tragedy that would echo far beyond its streets. The death of 20-year-old Raymond Williams, from Baghill near Pontefract. His death not the result of long-planned violence or hardened criminality, but of something far more unsettling — a chain of events that began with workplace horseplay and ended in a fatal shooting at Cottam Power Station near Retford.
On Friday the 13th of January 1967, three young men from Pontefract — Charles Lawrence Birdsall (19), Raymond Williams (20), and Melvyn Blades (19) — were working together at the vast construction site. Birdsall, a labourer and semi-skilled engineer, had travelled there some months earlier after leaving employment with his father’s firm. He later explained that he had felt uneasy working under his father, believing others thought he was not pulling his weight because of the connection to his father.
The working day ended at around 4pm, but the three remained on site into the evening. As night fell, the atmosphere was described as light-hearted at first, but tensions beneath the surface had been building for some time. Witnesses later spoke of Williams as a domineering figure, a young man who liked his own way and had a habit of throwing his weight around.
By around 9:30pm, what had begun as “light-hearted fooling around” turned more pointed. Birdsall became the focus of the others’ attention. After retreating to his room in Block ‘F’ and locking himself inside, he was targeted with a hosepipe. Water was forced under his door once, then again after a pause, soaking the floor and invading what little refuge he had sought.
Inside the room, something shifted. Just before 9:45pm, Birdsall was seen assembling a 12-bore single-barrel shotgun he kept in a case. He placed cartridges in his pocket, loaded the weapon, and stepped out into the corridor.
Sensing danger, Melvyn Blades ran and locked himself in his own room. Raymond Williams, however, remained outside near a hosepipe reel. As Birdsall approached, Williams turned toward him. Words were exchanged — accounts later described Williams’ tone as dismissive, telling him in effect to put the weapon away.
What happened next took only seconds. At a distance of roughly one to four feet, Birdsall raised the shotgun and fired. The blast struck Williams in the back. He fell to the floor of the corridor, mortally wounded.
In the immediate aftermath, events unfolded with a strange clarity. At 10:10pm, police were alerted — not by a witness, but by Birdsall himself, who phoned Retford police station and said plainly, “I’ve just shot a man.”
When officers, including Detective Sergeant D. F. Hanley and Police Constable G. Hardy, arrived at Cottam Power Station, an ambulance was already leaving with Williams.
Inside Block ‘F’, they found a grim scene: blood pooled along the passageway and an empty 12-bore cartridge case lay outside a door.
Birdsall approached them without resistance. “It’s me you want. I’ve shot him,” he said. When asked who the victim was, he replied, “Roy Williams.” He then led officers to his room, where the shotgun was found on the bed.
As he was arrested, he offered an explanation that hinted at a longer story: “It’s been building up for a long time.” Later, at Retford police station, he gave a voluntary statement. When told that Williams had died in hospital, his reaction was immediate and human: “My God, what will his mother say?”
The investigation revealed that the relationship between Birdsall and Williams had been troubled for months. The two had met in Pontefract before travelling together to Cottam. According to statements presented in court, Williams had been aggressive and overbearing, frequently threatening violence and asserting control over others. Birdsall claimed that the events of that week — culminating in the hosepipe incident — had pushed him beyond his limits. “He was overbearing. He always wanted his own way,” he said. “Things came to a head that night.”
On Thursday the 17th of January 1967, Birdsall appeared before Retford Magistrates charged with the murder of Raymond Williams. Represented by Mr H. J. Gundill of Pontefract and granted legal aid, he was remanded in custody.
Detective Inspector K. P. Cox indicated that committal proceedings would follow, while Birdsall’s father sat in court as the case began to gather national attention.
Two months later, in March 1967, the case came before Nottinghamshire Assizes Court. The prosecution, led by Mr D. G. A. Lowe QC, painted a picture of deliberate escalation — of a young man who had armed himself and fired at close range into another’s back. The defence, however, led by Mr H. Skinner QC, did not deny the shooting but argued that it amounted to manslaughter, not murder, brought about by sustained provocation.
Birdsall told the jury that he had not intended to kill. “I think I meant to frighten him,” he said. He described locking himself away to avoid confrontation and feeling harassed and unable to escape. “They just would not leave me alone,” he admitted, explaining that by the time the second burst of water came under his door, he was “pretty mad.”
The jury took only minutes to reach their decision. They found him not guilty of murder, but guilty of manslaughter, accepting that provocation had played a significant role in the fatal act.
Mr Justice Veale sentenced Birdsall to five years’ imprisonment, describing the shooting as “a dreadful thing.”
For Pontefract, the case lingered as a sobering reminder of how quickly ordinary lives can spiral into tragedy. What began as youthful banter on a cold January evening had ended with a shotgun blast, a young man dead, and another facing years behind bars — a stark and lasting shadow cast over the town they both once called home.
Note:
Birdsall was found guilty at Nottinghamshire Assizes Court, but what were the Assizes Courts?
Assize courts were periodic courts in England and Wales that handled the most serious criminal cases, such as murder and r**e, as well as major civil disputes. These courts were presided over by visiting judges from higher courts who traveled to the main county towns on circuits, and they were replaced by the Crown Court in 1971.
Jurisdiction: Assize courts dealt with the most serious criminal offenses, known as felonies, which could include capital crimes. They also handled significant civil disputes, like land or money claims, and later, divorce cases. Less serious offenses were handled by lower courts like Quarter Sessions or Petty Sessions (magistrates' courts).
Structure: The courts operated on a circuit system, with judges traveling to different county towns twice a year to hold the courts. Local juries were summoned to hear the cases and return verdicts.
Abolition: The system of assize courts was abolished in England and Wales by the Courts Act 1971, and their functions were integrated into a single, permanent Crown Court.
